--- title: 'Forward Strategist at Helsing' canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/forward-strategist-helsing-munich-rfev3xmk5c5r' type: 'job' last_seen: '2026-11-11' --- # Forward Strategist at Helsing - **Company:** Helsing - **Location:** Munich, Germany / Paris, France - **Posted:** 2026-08-20 - **Last confirmed live:** 2026-11-11 - **Apply:** https://helsing.ai/jobs/4538119101?gh_jid=4538119101 ## Job description ## Who we are Helsing is a defence AI company. Our mission is to protect our democracies. We aim to achieve technological leadership, so that open societies can continue to make sovereign decisions and control their ethical standards. As democracies, we believe we have a special responsibility to be thoughtful about the development and deployment of powerful technologies like AI. We take this responsibility seriously. We are an ambitious and committed team of engineers, AI specialists and customer-facing programme managers. We are looking for mission-driven people to join our European teams – and apply their skills to solve the most complex and impactful problems. We embrace an open and transparent culture that welcomes healthy debates on the use of technology in defence, its benefits, and its ethical implications. ## The role Forward Strategists at Helsing sit at the intersection of Product, Engineering, and Operations. Where engineering builds the system, the Forward Strategist works alongside it: landing in ambiguity, understanding the technical shape of the problem, and building a path through it that engineering, product, and operations teams can execute against. We deploy Forward Strategists against the highest-leverage problems in the company, where you will embed deeply in the technical and product work, take full ownership of outcomes, and leave behind systems, tooling, and clarity that keep delivering long after you have moved on. The day-to-day - Take a poorly-defined technical or product problem, establish what it actually is, and build a structured path to resolution, setting direction through the ambiguity - Deliver on that path end-to-end, prioritising ruthlessly, working across product, engineering, operations, commercial, hardware, and legal domains, and owning the outcome until it ships - Make sound, well-evidenced calls on technical and product trade-offs under uncertainty, commit to them, and adapt when the facts change, without deferring decisions or sitting on the fence - Work close to the codebase and system architecture, translating ambiguous requirements into technical specifications that engineering teams can build against - Build alignment across product, engineering, and operations teams without relying on formal authority, communicate a clear technical vision, and coach others toward it - Leave the organisation permanently better, building tooling, processes, and technical documentation that scale beyond what you can personally produce You should apply if you - Are product-obsessed, and dig into a product roadmap, spotting gaps and shaping new opportunities before anyone else sees them - Have landed in an ambiguous, high-stakes technical environment with no predefined strategy and turned it into a shipped, structured outcome - Have built tools, systems, or software that outlasted your involvement and continued to generate value for engineering and product teams - Reason from first principles into unfamiliar technical domains quickly, whether distributed systems, deployment infrastructure, or product architecture, and become the person others come to for the answer - Have a track record of making clear, well-reasoned calls, backing them with evidence, and holding to them while remaining genuinely open to changing your view when the facts shift - Have brought engineering and product teams with you without formal authority, built alignment across technical and non-technical stakeholders, and shaped how others think about a problem or outcome - Are comfortable working close to a codebase, engineering trade-offs, and technical roadmaps, even if you are not the one writing the production code Note: We operate in an industry where women, as well as other minority groups, are systematically under-represented. We encourage you to apply even if you don't meet all the listed qualifications; ability and impact cannot be summarised in a few bullet points. ## Nice to have - Experience operating within or alongside a product or engineering function, with a working understanding of software development lifecycles, deployment pipelines, and technical trade-offs - Exposure to a high-ambiguity environment, whether as a founder, early operator, or technical consultant to growth-stage companies, where the job description mattered far less than the systems and outcomes you owned Join Helsing and work with world-leading experts in their fields Helsing's work is important. You'll be directly contributing to the protection of democratic countries while balancing both ethical and geopolitical concerns. The work is unique. We operate in a domain that has highly unusual technical requirements and constraints, and where robustness, safety, and ethical considerations are vital. You will face unique Engineering and AI challenges that make a meaningful impact in the world. Our work frequently takes us right up to the state of the art in technical innovation, be it reinforcement learning, distributed systems, generative AI, or deployment infrastructure. The defence industry is entering the most exciting phase of the technological development curve. Advances in our field of world are not incremental: Helsing is part of, and often leading, historic leaps forward. In our domain, success is a matter of order-of-magnitude improvements and novel capabilities. This means we take bets, aim high, and focus on big opportunities. Despite being a relatively young company, Helsing has already been selected for multiple significant government contracts. We actively encourage healthy, proactive, and diverse debate internally about what we do and how we choose to do it. Teams and individual engineers are trusted (and encouraged) to practise responsible autonomy and critical thinking, and to focus on outcomes, not conformity. At Helsing you will have a say in how we (and you!) work, the opportunity to engage on what does and doesn't work, and to take ownership of aspects of our culture that you care deeply about. ## What we offer - Competitive salary and stock options (VSOP) - Relocation support: up to €2,500 and 4 weeks temporary accommodation - Learning: €500/£450 yearly allowance - Health & wellness: gym membership and mental health support (Nilo.health) - Social: regular company events and monthly social allowances - Enhanced parental leave: 22 weeks fully paid for primary caregivers & 6 weeks for secondary caregivers - Family support: 5 days of paid family emergency leave, 100% remote work option during pregnancy and phased return to work These are the core benefits across all locations; there may be additional benefits in specific sites. ## #LI-DNI Helsing is an equal opportunities employer. We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, religion, sexual orientation, age, marital status, disability or gender identity. Please do not submit personal data revealing racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, religious or philosophical beliefs, trade union membership, data concerning your health, or data concerning your sexual orientation. Helsing's Candidate Privacy and Confidentiality Regime can be found [here](https://helsing.ai/candidate-privacy-and-confidentiality-regime/). ## About Helsing ## Company Overview - **One-liner**: Helsing builds artificial intelligence-driven autonomous systems and defense hardware to protect democratic nations, integrating airborne, maritime, and electronic warfare capabilities. - **Entity Type**: Private (Series D in progress, May 2026) - **Headquarters**: Munich, Germany - **Founded**: 2021 - **Founders**: Torsten Reil, Gundbert Scherf, Niklas Köhler ## Core Business - Primary industry: Defense technology, artificial intelligence, autonomous systems - Target customers: NATO-aligned governments, defense ministries, and allied militaries (B2G) - Mission: "Protect our democracies" – using software and AI to enhance battlefield decision-making, precision engagement, and national security ## Products & Services - **HX-2**: AI-enabled strike drone, mass-manufactured in “Resilience Factories” (1,000+ per month) - **HF-1**: AI-powered electronic warfare system (autonomous combat aircraft for electronic attack) - **SG-1 Fathom**: Underwater autonomous glider for maritime surveillance and infrastructure protection - **Cirra**: AI for electronic warfare, already flight-tested (Feb 2026) - **CA-1 Europa**: Joint project with HENSOLDT for advanced electronic attack capabilities - **Altra**: Recce strike software for battlefield intelligence - **Centaur**: AI system for autonomous air dominance - **Lura**: Underwater autonomous mass system ## Market Standing - **Valuation**: Not disclosed (latest deal $1.2B in progress, May 2026) - **Total Funding**: ~$1.5B (Series D $694M in July 2025; Series C $489M in July 2024; Series B $222M in Sept 2023; Series A $119M in Nov 2021; Seed in Jan 2021) - **Key Investors**: Prima Materia (led Series A & D), General Catalyst (led Series B & C), plus 12 total investors - **Key Partners**: HENSOLDT, EURENCO, Grob Aircraft (subsidiary), Airbus Defence and Space (talent source) - **Growth Signals**: Headcount grew 78.4% YoY (515 employees per LinkedIn; PitchBook reports 900); second German Resilience Factory operational (Feb 2026); expanded to 17 countries; acquired HELSING LIMITED and Helsing Germany GmbH; 192 active job postings (June 2026) ## Competitive Advantages - **Full-stack defense AI**: Combines software, hardware, and mass manufacturing in-house, unlike traditional primes or pure software firms. - **Resilience Factories**: Proprietary high-volume production lines for drones (1,000 HX-2/month) with local supply chains, enabling rapid scaling. - **Ethical commitment**: Publicly emphasizes responsible AI deployment and democratic governance, differentiating from less transparent competitors. - **Pan-European footprint**: Offices in Munich, London, Paris, Berlin – drawing top talent from across Europe and the US, with strong ties to governments. ## Strategic Focus - Scaling autonomous systems across air, land, sea, and underwater domains. - Deepening partnerships with European defense ministries and industrial primes (e.g., HENSOLDT, EURENCO). - Expanding electronic warfare and AI-powered strike capabilities (e.g., CA-1 Europa, Cirra). - Recruiting heavily for AI research (RL, CV, foundation models, robotics), hardware engineering, and program management. ## Why Work Here - **Mission-driven**: Explicitly focused on protecting democratic values – attracts talent who want meaningful impact in defense. - **Culture**: Values include “move fast, act with conviction, do what’s right – even when it’s hard”; ground-up playbook, skeptical of conventional wisdom. - **Growth**: 78% YoY headcount growth, 192 open roles, and rapid internal advancement. - **Diverse team**: Combines software engineers, deep learning specialists, program managers from top companies (Palantir, Google, Amazon, BAE Systems, McKinsey). - **Locations**: Hybrid-friendly offices in Munich, London, Paris, Berlin; also remote or flexible for some roles. - **Perks**: Not explicitly listed, but significant investment in R&D and manufacturing suggests strong resources for tools and equipment. ## Sources 1. [helsing.ai](https://helsing.ai/) 2. [helsing.ai/careers](https://helsing.ai/careers) 3. [linkedin.com/company/helsing](https://www.linkedin.com/company/helsing) 4. [pitchbook.com/profiles/company/481513-60](https://pitchbook.com/profiles/company/481513-60) ## Other roles at Helsing - [Field Engineer - Interceptors](https://feeny.ai/job/field-engineer-interceptors-helsing-london-7wvjvkmm5y99) — London, United Kingdom - [Mecanizador/a Senior y Responsable de Taller](https://feeny.ai/job/mecanizador-a-senior-y-responsable-de-taller-helsing-barcelona-eeb8v88v67jc) — Barcelona, Spain - [Encargado/a de Taller de Mecanizado de Precisión](https://feeny.ai/job/encargado-a-de-taller-de-mecanizado-de-precision-helsing-barcelona-fx7jmfvscsf6) — Barcelona, Spain - [Encargado/a Taller de Mecanizado CNC](https://feeny.ai/job/encargado-a-taller-de-mecanizado-cnc-helsing-barcelona-54y9dd9dv9jj) — Barcelona, Spain - [Robotics Senior NPI Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/robotics-senior-npi-engineer-helsing-barcelona-gqmmv2m3qx6z) — Barcelona, Spain - [Robotics Senior Industrialization Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/robotics-senior-industrialization-engineer-helsing-barcelona-vkmj3bstg3sy) — Barcelona, Spain - [Robotics Senior DFM Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/robotics-senior-dfm-engineer-helsing-barcelona-xvad6ygy62ej) — Barcelona, Spain - [Robotics NPI Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/robotics-npi-engineer-helsing-barcelona-q69j4tvv861j) — Barcelona, Spain - [Robotics Industrialization Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/robotics-industrialization-engineer-helsing-barcelona-nz2k6h44rzy7) — Barcelona, Spain - [Robotics DFM Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/robotics-dfm-engineer-helsing-barcelona-pe9pczd1dfkm) — Barcelona, Spain